2022 Sunderland City Council election

2022 Sunderland City Council election

←  2021 5 May 2022 2023  →
One third of 75 seats on Sunderland City Council, except Copt Hill 38 seats needed for a majority
First party Second party Third party   Leader Graeme Miller Niall Hodson Antony Mullen Party Labour Liberal Democrats Conservative Leader's seat Washington South Millfield Barnes Seats before 43 12 19 Seats won 16 5 4 Seats after 42 14 18 Seat change 1 2 1 Popular vote 30,687 10,355 20,986 Swing 5.4% 0.1% 3.9%
Map showing the results of the 2022 Sunderland City Council election, including Copt Hill
Majority party before election Labour Majority party after election Labour

The 2022 Sunderland City Council election took place on 5 May 2022 to elect members of Sunderland City Council. This is on the same day as other elections across the United Kingdom.

Background

24 of the 75 seats will be up for election ^[1] All 25 wards were originally due to elect councillors, however the election in Copt Hill ward was postponed following the death of the city's only UKIP candidate. ^[2]

Since the first election in 1973, Sunderland has been a strongly Labour council, which consistently achieves over 60% control of the council. ^[3] 2021 represented the worst year for Labour in terms of seats; the party lost 9 with 39.2% of the vote. ^[4] The Conservatives gained 6 with 34.8%, the Liberal Democrats gained 4 with 15.4%, UKIP did not make any further gains with 4.5%, and the Green Party lost representation on the council with 5.2%.

There had been speculation ahead of the election that the Labour Party could lose overall control of Sunderland City Council for the first time in its history.

The seats up for election this year were last elected in 2018. In that election, Labour won 61 seats (a net loss of 4 seats). The Conservatives gained 2 seats while the Liberal Democrats gained 3 seats on the Council. 1 independent councillor lost their seat.

Election results

After the election, the Labour Party maintained control of the Council. Labour's majority was reduced to 4, having lost 1 seat to the Liberal Democrats in Doxford Ward. In Fulwell, the Conservatives also lost a seat to the Liberal Democrats with a swing of 15% ^[5]

The results defied media speculation that Labour would continue to haemorrhage seats like in 2021 and 2019. Labour leader Graeme Miller commented that "It was a good night" for his party because they "stopped the rot". Conservative Group leader Anthony Mullen, blamed his party's poor performance on the Partygate Scandal, after the Conservatives failed to gain seats in Washington South, Rhyope, St Anne's or Silksworth. Liberal Democrat leader Niall Hodson said his party's gains from both Labour and the Conservatives were a result of “good candidates working hard for a long period of time”. ^[6]

2022 Sunderland City Council election
Party		This election			Full council			This election
		Seats	Net	Seats %	Other	Total	Total %	Votes	Votes %	+/−
	Labour	16	1	62.5	26	42	54.7	29,718	44.6	+5.4
	Conservative	4	1	16.7	14	18	24.0	20,602	30.9	-3.9
	Liberal Democrats	5	2	20.8	9	14	18.7	10,294	15.5	+0.1
	Independent	0		0	1	1	1.3	1,437	2.2	+1.4
	Green	0		0	0	0	0	4,410	6.6	+1.4
	Freedom Alliance	0		0	0	0	0	120	0.2	+0.2
	Communist	0		0	0	0	0	30	<0.1	-0.1
	UKIP	0		0	0	0	0	0	0	-4.5

Council composition

In the last council, the composition of the council was:

↓

43	19	12	1
Labour	Conservative	Lib Dem	INDY

After the election, the composition of the council was:

↓

42	18	14	1
Labour	Conservative	Lib Dem	INDY

Results by ward

An asterisk indicates an incumbent councillor.

Barnes

Barnes ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Antony Mullen*	1,637	47.6	0.7
	Labour	Abul Haque	1,329	38.6	2.4
	Liberal Democrats	Tim Ellis	264	7.7	1.7
	Green	Rachel Featherstone	212	6.2	1.5
Majority			308	9.0	1.7
Turnout			3,453	41.9	1.6
	Conservative hold		Swing	0.9

Castle

Castle ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Allison Chisnall	1,308	64.2	6.1
	Conservative	Paul Burke	505	24.8	2.5
	Green	Alison Ogle	223	11.0	New
Majority			803	39.4	9.3
Turnout			2,050	25.2	1.1
	Labour hold		Swing	4.3

Copt Hill (countermanded)

Copt Hill ^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Tracy Dodds*	969	44.3	4.3
	Independent	Kathleen Pearson	606	27.7	New
	Conservative	Patricia Ann Francis	384	17.6	2.8
	Green	Andrew Robertson	158	7.2	3.5
	Liberal Democrats	Mary Ann Boddy	61	2.8	New
Majority			363	16.6	0.6
Turnout			2,188	24.3	8.1
	Labour hold		Swing	16%

Note: This ward election took place on Thursday 16 June 2022. Copt Hill ward election was rescheduled due to the death of UKIP candidate Reg Coulson. ^[9]

Doxford

Doxford ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Allen Curtis	1,511	49.7	1.0
	Labour	Steven Hansom	851	28.0	2.3
	Conservative	Tom Cuthbertson	565	18.6	3.5
	Green	Richard Bradley	115	3.8	0.3
Majority			660	21.7	1.3
Turnout			3,048	38.4	1.1
	Liberal Democrats gain from Labour		Swing	0.7

Fulwell

Fulwell ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Malcolm Bond	2,193	52.4	15.9
	Conservative	Sandra Boyers	1,254	29.9	12.5
	Labour	Iain Kay	648	15.5	1.4
	Green	Liam Dufferwiel	93	2.2	2.0
Majority			939	22.5	16.6
Turnout			4,188	47.3	1.7
	Liberal Democrats gain from Conservative		Swing	14.2

Hendon

Hendon ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Michael Mordey	1,087	45.7	10.9
	Liberal Democrats	Tom Livingstone	909	38.2	4.0
	Conservative	Syed Ali	281	11.8	3.7
	Green	Helmut Izaks	104	4.4	0.1
Majority			178	7.5	0.1
Turnout			2,390	29.3	1.4
	Labour hold		Swing	7.5

Hetton

Hetton ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Claire Rowntree*	1,320	45.1	0.4
	Independent	David Geddis	991	36.3	16.6
	Conservative	Adelle Burnicle	339	12.4	7.0
	Liberal Democrats	John Lennox	168	6.2	4.0
Majority			239	8.8	16.2
Turnout			2,735	29.6	1.3
	Labour hold		Swing	8.5

Houghton

Houghton ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Mark Burrell	1,655	55.7	8.7
	Conservative	Craig Morrison	681	22.9	8.8
	Independent	Donna Thomas	446	15.7	new
	Green	Emma Robson	169	5.7	0.8
Majority			974	32.8	16.5
Turnout			2,964	29.3	0.8
	Labour hold		Swing	8.3

Millfield

Millfield ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Andrew Wood*	1,227	49.0	16.8
	Labour	Kingsley Okojie	923	36.9	13.3
	Conservative	Gwennyth Gibson	250	10.0	2.6
	Green	Gary Ogle	64	2.6	0.7
	Communist	Julio Johnson	30	1.2	0
Majority			304	12.9	29.3
Turnout			2,503	33.3	1.9
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	15.1

Pallion

Pallion ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	George Smith*	1,470	57.9	1.5
	Labour	Karen Noble	723	28.5	8.7
	Conservative	Judith Porter	266	10.5	6.4
	Green	Dorothy Lynch	79	3.1	0.7
Majority			747	29.4	10.2
Turnout			2,543	32.8	0.1
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	5.1

Redhill

Redhill ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Paul Stewart*	1,065	56.3	5.7
	Liberal Democrats	Steven Donkin	411	21.7	new
	Conservative	Sue Leishman	326	17.2	13.5
	Green	Billy Howells	89	4.7	new
Majority			654	34.6	14.9
Turnout			1,901	24.1	0.1
	Labour hold		Swing	8.0

Ryhope

Ryhope ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Martyn Herron	1,311	45.7	2.9
	Conservative	Kevin Leonard	1,283	44.7	4.4
	Green	Robert Welsh	277	9.6	new
Majority			28	1.0	5.3
Turnout			2,811	33.4	2.4
	Labour hold		Swing	3.7

Sandhill

Sandhill ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Margaret Crosby*	1,274	53.2	2.4
	Labour	Debra Waller	800	33.4	1.0
	Conservative	Christine Reed	249	10.4	2.3
	Green	Laura Hind	71	3.0	new
Majority			474	19.8	3.4
Turnout			2,404	31.2	2.2
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	1.7

Shiney Row

Shiney Row ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Mel Speding*	1,658	55.2	5.5
	Conservative	Richard Vardy	882	20.4	12.0
	Green	Thomas Mower	345	11.5	2.2
	Freedom Alliance	Michael Kennedy	120	4.0	new
Majority			776	25.8	8.5
Turnout			3,016	31.6	0.6
	Labour hold		Swing	4.1

Silksworth

Silksworth ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Phil Tye*	1,618	56.2	13.6
	Conservative	Jack Simm	923	32.1	8.7
	Green	Christopher Crozier	337	11.7	4.9
Majority			695	24.1	22.3
Turnout			2,885	36.5	3.0
	Labour hold		Swing	11.2

Southwick

Southwick ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Alex Samuels*	1,309	58.6	7.8
	Conservative	John Wiper	623	27.9	3.8
	Green	Morgan Seed	280	12.5	8.1
Majority			686	30.7	11.6
Turnout			2,232	28.3	1.4
	Labour hold		Swing	5.7

St. Anne's

St. Anne's ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Susan Watson	1,061	48.8	6.9
	Conservative	Bryan Foster	840	38.6	3.3
	Green	Raymond Moore	273	12.6	new
Majority			221	10.2	10.1
Turnout			2,183	28.0	1.8
	Labour hold		Swing	5.1

St. Chad's

St. Chad's ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Simon Ayre	1,453	49.5	10.4
	Labour	Martin Old	974	33.7	1.2
	Liberal Democrats	Anthony Usher	145	8.8	1.2
	Green	Alyson Kordbarlag	114	7.9	new
Majority			479	15.8	11.6
Turnout			2,697	36.8	0.8
	Conservative hold		Swing	5.8

St. Michael's

St. Michael's ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Michael Dixon*	1,832	53.8	3.3
	Labour	Chris Smith	1,201	35.3	9.0
	Green	John Appleton	231	6.8	6.5
	Liberal Democrats	Colin Wilson	139	4.1	0.7
Majority			631	18.5	12.3
Turnout			3,408	40.7	3.1
	Conservative hold		Swing	6.2

St. Peter's

St. Peter's ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Lynn Vera*	1,567	49.4	4.4
	Labour	Tom Newton	1,068	33.6	2.2
	Liberal Democrats	Peter Walton	280	8.8	3.4
	Green	Auburn Langley	250	7.9	1.5
Majority			499	15.8	6.6
Turnout			3,175	40.2	1.4

Washington Central

Washington Central ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Linda Williams*	1,683	59.1	4.0
	Conservative	Derek Dunn	883	31.0	0.3
	Green	Emma Cutting	267	9.4	2.2
Majority			800	28.1	4.3
Turnout			2,846	34.1	0.5
	Labour hold		Swing	2.2

Washington East

Washington East ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Logan Guy	1,682	53.3	5.4
	Conservative	Chris Eynon	1,223	38.7	4.4
	Green	Michal Chantkowski	239	7.6	1.7
Majority			459	14.5	9.7
Turnout			3,158	35.2	0.8
	Labour hold		Swing	4.9

Washington North

Washington North ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jill Fletcher*	1,349	61.2	8.4
	Conservative	Hilary Johnson	552	25.0	6.7
	Green	Scott Burrows	298	13.5	7.1
Majority			797	36.2	15.1
Turnout			2,203	27.8	1.9
	Labour hold		Swing	7.6

Washington South

Washington South ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Graeme Miller*	1,454	47.4	10.9
	Conservative	Peter Noble	1,310	42.7	5.7
	Liberal Democrats	Sean Terry	303	9.9	2.4
Majority			144	4.7	4.2
Turnout			3,078	40.1	5.0
	Labour hold		Swing	2.6

Washington West

Washington West ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Dorothy Trueman*	1,641	58.4	6.4
	Conservative	Sam Cosgrove	878	31.2	1.4
	Green	Paul Leonard	280	10.0	1.4
Majority			763	27.1	7.7
Turnout			2,812	32.4	0.3
	Labour hold		Swing	3.9

References

1. "Election timetable in England". GOV.UK. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
2. Graham, Hannah (21 April 2022). "Vote on hold as 'dedicated' council candidate dies during campaign". ChronicleLive. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
3. "Sunderland City Council Election Results 1973-2012" (PDF). Elections Centre. Retrieved 15 April 2022.
4. Graham, Hannah (8 April 2022). "Tories hope for Labour loss in Sunderland council elections". ChronicleLive. Retrieved 15 April 2022.
5. "'Complacent' Labour and Conservatives handed Lib Dems gains in Sunderland local elections". www.sunderlandecho.com. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
6. "'Complacent' Labour and Conservatives handed Lib Dems gains in Sunderland local elections".
7. "List of candidates standing" (PDF). Sunderland City Council. Retrieved 15 April 2022.
8. "Declaration of Result of Poll" (PDF). Sunderland City Council. Retrieved 16 August 2022.
9. "New date set for Copt Hill election after death of candidate halted ballot". www.sunderlandecho.com. Retrieved 19 May 2022.